SBS’s Friday-Saturday drama Doctor X: Mafia in White is enjoying impressive television ratings, but its growing popularity has also sparked criticism over alleged medical inaccuracies. Some viewers have expressed frustration with scenes they believe lack proper medical realism.
The SBS drama Doctor X: Mafia in White, starring Kim Ji Won, has made a strong debut thanks to its gripping storyline. According to Nielsen Korea, the first episode recorded a nationwide rating of 11.4%, while the second episode climbed to 14.9%. The series surpassed the 10% mark immediately upon its premiere, demonstrating remarkable momentum. However, despite its ratings success, viewers have increasingly questioned the accuracy of certain medical procedures depicted in the drama.
One internet user criticized the series on an online community, writing, “I couldn’t even get through the opening scene because it was so cringeworthy. Why would they send a patient whose inguinal hernia had already been reduced to the hospital by ambulance for emergency surgery? And when the patient’s blood pressure couldn’t even be measured, what was the anesthesiology team doing without administering epinephrine? Is it some kind of unwritten rule these days that medical dramas don’t bother consulting medical professionals?”
Other viewers shared similar frustrations, with one sarcastically commenting, “Don’t forget the scene where they used a defibrillator at 300 joules on a patient in cardiac arrest. I seriously wanted to smash my monitor.”
As the controversy surrounding the drama’s medical accuracy continued, comments from emergency medicine physician and writer Professor Namgung In, who participated as a medical adviser for Doctor X, began attracting attention. On October 10, Namgung revealed on his social media account that the series marked his first experience providing medical consultation directly on a filming set.
When an internet user asked, “You really were the medical adviser for this drama, right?” Namgung responded candidly, “Yes, I was the on-set medical adviser. If you see something medically incorrect in the drama, just assume the adviser and the production team argued about it, and the adviser lost.”
His humorous admission quickly drew reactions from viewers, who expressed both amusement and sympathy. Comments included, “How could you lose that argument when the medical information was wrong?” and “It looks like you lost pretty badly.” The exchange resonated with audiences who had already raised concerns about the drama’s medical realism.
Sources: Daum